wfn.org | AANA BULLETIN No. 10/03 March 17, 2003 (c)

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

AANA BULLETIN No. 10/03 March 17, 2003 (c)

All Africa News Agency
P. O Box, 66878, 00800 Westlands
NAIROBI, Kenya
Tel: 254-2-4442215, 4440224
Fax: 254-2-4445847, 4443241
Email: aanaapta@insightkenya.com , aanaapta@hotmail.com

AANA Bulletin
Acting	Editor -Elly Wamari	

Bulletin APTA
Acting Editor - Silvie Alemba

FEATURES

Wave Of Gender Violence Still Haunts Botswana

While Botswana prides itself as one of the most peaceful country in Africa 
and one with a vibrant economy, women continue to bear the brunt of 
exploitation by men.  A wave of violence against women now exposes 
deep-rooted macho character of a Motswana man, and highlights significant 
disparities even in law, between men and women, reports AANA Correspondent, 
Rodrick Mukumbira.

W
ords fail Phemelo Mooki (21) as she recalls the fateful night of February 
14.  She witnessed her roommate at the University of Botswana in Gaborone, 
Gasekgale Matlhodi (21), being stabbed to death by her jealous boyfriend.

While February 14 has a special slot on the world's calendar as Valentine's 
Day, Mooki, a first-year humanities student at the university, is 
struggling to come to terms with Matlhodi's murder. She was forced into a 
ringside seat to watch helplessly as 23-year-old Petros Randome stabbed 
Matlhodi several times, to death.

"After he (Randome) had satisfied himself, Matlhodi struggled to where I 
was crouching and collapsed in my arms," Mooki pitifully told AANA. "Her 
last word to me was to call my name. She literally died in my arms," she 
added amid sobs.

Matlhodi and Randome had had a quarrel two days before the bloody 
incident.  The	disagreement had resulted in Gasekgale ending their 
five-year relationship.

After stabbing Matlhodi, Randome disappeared into the bushes next to the 
university campus. His body was discovered the following day hanging from a 
tree.

A week later, on February 24, Nyaradzo Maunganidze (23), a student at a 
teachers training college, was stabbed five times by her boyfriend. At the 
time of her death, she was eight months pregnant.

She died on the way to hospital and her boyfriend's attempt to commit 
suicide by drinking cattle dip mixture was thwarted by neighbours. He is 
currently in police custody.

Botswana police say Nyaradzo's death brings to nine the number of people 
who have fallen victim to passionate murders since January this year.

Gender activists say this is a result of a nation that has failed to 
embrace equity between men and women.

"The macho character of a Motswana man is quite prevalent here," says 
Chibuya Dabutha of Women Against Rape, a human rights organisation based in 
Maun, a resort town in northwestern Botswana. "Batswana men can't bear 
being opposed by women no matter what gender education is used," she adds.

According to her, all the victims that have fallen to passionate murders, 
wanted to get out of an abusive relationship.

Tebatso Menyatso, the principal gender officer in the country's department 
of women's affairs concurs, and adds that there is an absence of awareness 
on women's rights, particularly among men. "This is really a matter of 
concern," she says, adding, "As it seems, some people are taking gender 
violence lightly."

According to Menyatso, gender education has been one sided. More emphasis 
has been placed on empowering women, resulting in women becoming more aware 
of their rights than men. "Women are no longer passive observers as was in 
the past and are now beginning to speak out against bad decisions," she says.

As a result, Menyatso says, women in abusive relationships are now walking 
out, something that most men are finding difficult to accept.  "Such women 
get a violent reaction from their lovers," she notes.

Cally Ramalefo, the executive director of Botswana Family Welfare 
Association (BOFWA), contends that passionate murders are a result of young 
people entering into sexual relationships at a tender age.

Her organisation has carried out studies on sexual behaviour of young 
people in the country.	A research in  January revealed that one-third of 
boys aged between 10 to 14 years, and a quarter of 15 and 24 year-olds 
would hit their girlfriends if they refused to have sex with them.

The University of Botswana, which has suffered much this year by losing 
five of its students to murders arising from broken relationships, blame 
the trend on the absence of enough counselling centres in the country.

The institution's director of careers and counselling services, Amos Alao, 
says his department will soon undertake research into why people are 
killing each other and committing suicide.

The Botswana Christian Council (BCC) has called for a national day of 
prayer on the issue.  "We all must rise and find a solution to this 
violation of rights of the girl child," says BCC President, Rupert Hambira. 
"The solutions will come out the Church," he notes.

He adds: "The Church has had an impact here in Botswana, and this is the 
time to turn to it to re-enforce moral and ethical obligations."

Statistics presented to AANA by Botswana Police indicate that women are not 
only threatened with violent killings arising from gender insensitivity, 
but also with rape.  For a country with a population of 1.6 million, the 
police have handled over 4,000 cases of rape since January.

A source from Women Against Rape says this year's figure is likely to 
bypass last year's 14,563, and that what has happened this year is just a 
tip of the iceberg.

But the escalation of gender violence in Botswana has also exposed some 
disparities that exist between men and women. Pemelo Maiketso, a gender 
research consultant, says women are still frustrated by marriage laws, 
which empower men to make decisions regarding ownership of land and 
accessing loans.

Even government loan schemes such as the Citizen Entrepreneurship 
Development Agency (CEDA), she says, disadvantage women, who, because of 
lack of property ownership, are not able to meet security requirement 
needed to obtain a loan.

She also notes the HIV/AIDS pandemic as one area where women are losing 
out. Latest statistics from UNAIDS indicate that 39 percent of the 
population's 16 to 49 age group are HIV positive, and of that figure, 67 
percent are women.

"The power relations, where women are dependent on men, makes it difficult 
to negotiate for safer sex and thus put them (women) at risk," says Maiketso.

While gender violence continues to dim progress towards women's 
empowerment, the Botswana government has made some strides in women's 
representation in decision making positions.

Women now occupy 16.7 percent seats in the country's parliament, compared 
to nine percent in 1994, before the Beijing Conference. Two women have also 
been appointed to the House of Chiefs, setting, one of the best precedence 
in southern Africa.

For a country with such a small population, two women have also made it to 
the bench (judiciary), a figure Maiketso says, is significant.

 From A Past Of Hostilities To A Future Of Partnerships

Over the past decade, the government of Rwanda has been on a difficult task 
of rebuilding the country, torn apart by years of conflict that peaked in 
1994 with a complete breakdown of infrastructure and massive displacement 
of a highly polarised population. With support from church organisations 
and civil society, the government is now beginning to see light along the 
path towards reconciliation and development, reports Geoffrey H. Kaiza

T
hrough a government of national unity, Rwanda, with some support from the 
international community, has registered progress in moving from a state of 
emergency to long-term development.

After the tragic 1994 genocide, the first challenge that the government 
faced was to stabilise the country and create conditions that would enable 
the whole population enjoy peace and security.

At an interview with AANA recently, Rev Andri Mfitumukiza, an ordained 
priest in the Baptist Church of Rwanda, said that developmental programmes 
initiated by the government and coalition of religious organisations, were 
designed in a way that would bring Bahutu and Batutsi ethnic communities in 
common efforts to heal wounds.

Rev Mfitumukiza is also the director of African Leadership and 
Reconciliation Ministries (ALRM) based in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.

He recalls that, shortly after the genocide of 1994, hatred, 
discrimination, and other vices, penetrated into the Church. The most 
affected churches included the Free Methodist Church, United Baptist 
Church, and Pentecostal Church.

"It was worrying that in a number of parishes, church leaders who survived 
the massacres and those who had just returned home from the Diaspora, kept 
fighting for leadership positions," he says.

"Today, we are witnessing a growing sensibility and perception of the 
specificity of the other.  An attitude of openness to [the other] has been 
a keynote at all levels - religious, political and tribal," Rev. 
Mfitumukiza points out.

About three-and-a half million Rwandese refugees have been repatriated and 
resettled. This is a phenomenal repatriation record in world history.

The process of reintegration of refugees and members of former government 
army (ex-Far) has further promoted reconciliation. Close to 15,000 ex-Far 
soldiers have been integrated into the national army, Rwandese Patriotic 
Army (RPA), at various levels.

In promoting harmony, a unity and reconciliation commission was established 
to consolidate government policy of redressing the legacy of divisive 
politics, that has been a prominent feature in Rwanda for many decades.

The commission continues to raise public awareness through civic education 
initiatives (ingando). Furthermore, there has been extensive dialogue under 
the leadership of President Paul Kagame, touching on unity and 
reconciliation, justice, democratisation, security and economy.

Many are those who believe that accepting differences and taking them 
seriously may not be easy.  A basic feeling of fear of the 'other' needs to 
be overcome.

Rev Mfitumukiza is convinced that, accepted with an open mind, the other 
ceases to be a menace to one's own self.  On the contrary, he or she 
becomes an essential factor of one's identity.

  "I believe, there is a mutual fulfilment in a true intercultural and 
interfaith encounter," notes Rev. Mfitumukiza.

According to the priest, the government and the Church in Rwanda have laid 
emphasis on specific areas in their contribution to reconciliation processes.

For example, the government has made progress in building a justice system 
from scratch. Trials have taken place to bring to justice, genocide 
suspects. Currently, there are over 120,000 genocide suspects in 
overcrowded prisons.

More than 10 percent of these have either been convicted or acquitted. 
About 12 million Rwanda Francs (US$ 27,000) are spent annually on prisons.

To deal with this caseload expeditiously, the government has initiated a 
participatory form of justice (Gacaca) that draws from the experience of 
traditional pre-colonial Rwandan society, where councils of elders would 
handle cases at community levels.

A human rights commission has been established to promote the rule of law 
and respect for the fundamental rights of citizens.

A legal and constitutional commission has been established to consult all 
Rwandese citizens on what kind of constitution the country should have at 
the end of the transitional period in December 2003.

Transparency and accountability within government institutions have been 
identified and promoted as critical ingredients necessary for effective and 
efficient government.

Security has been restored in all the 12 administrative prefectures of 
Rwanda. Ironically, this is a peace dividend from Rwanda's involvement in 
the DRC rebel saga.

The presence of RPA troops in eastern DRC has enabled Rwanda to flash out 
genocide perpetrators and pockets of rebels that hitherto launched attacks 
from the area.

The Church has also gained progress. Intermarriages between different 
ethnic groups are being encouraged and the faithful respond to it favourably.

Children born from such intermarriages are more open to other communities 
and build bridges of partnership between the two ethnic groups (Bahutu and 
Batutsi).

In most parishes, it has been advisable to promote occasions of encounter 
between different ethnic groups through celebrations.

Activities of this kind are offering each ethnic group a chance of 
presenting their own customs, jokes, music and wisdom, to enhance mutual 
knowledge, appreciation and tolerance.

Rev Mfitumukiza says it is important not to ignore the multi-ethnicity of 
Christian communities.	He explains that the Church presents opportunities 
that can strengthen relationships between different groups, and encourage 
them to share and appreciate each other.

According to him, this needs intensification of church activities that 
transcend social, religious and cultural boundaries, and promote unity and 
fellowship.

As the people of Rwanda look forward to general elections scheduled for 
December this year under a new Constitution, it is hoped by many that 
measures will need to be taken to ensure that people of new generations 
will never again use their ethnicity or social status to victimise others.

"Thank God, we are now moving from hostility to fellowship. Today, we 
either learn to live together or perish," concludes Rev. Mfitumukiza.

Kenyans Discuss How To Uphold Affirmative Action

Described by academics as sets of programmes and policies that grant 
favourable treatment to disadvantaged groups, mostly on the basis of race 
and gender, affirmative action has been a thorny issue in Kenya. Debates on 
the subject still rage on, with gender activists in the country leading the 
pack in arguing out possible ways of entrenching it in the system, reports 
AANA Correspondent Joyce Mulama.

E
ven after calls by international charters to governments to adopt 
affirmative action, Kenyan women still fall under those considered 
marginalised.

At mention of the subject, the minds of many Kenyans return to the year 
2000, when former President Daniel arap Moi publicly declared, "You know I 
don't believe in affirmative action for women, this I have said openly."

His utterances followed an Affirmative Action Bill tabled in parliament 
then by outspoken parliamentarian, Hon Beth Mugo.  Moi then made a joke out 
of it saying, "Those women who have made it have done so because of merit. 
They were not favoured."

His disregard for affirmative action was accentuated in 2001 when the 
country failed to send its share of a required one-third of women 
representation to the East Africa Legislative Assembly.

In frustration, Hon Mugo led a group of women legislators among other 
activists in a protest demonstration in Arusha, where the assembly was 
being inaugurated.

Their major complaint was that the country had nominated only two women 
instead of a required minimum of three.

Kenya's counterparts in the East Africa Community, on the other hand,  had 
passed the test.  Uganda nominated four while Tanzania named three. Each 
country was expected to nominate nine legislators in total.

Kenya's failure to abide by the requirement demonstrated to the world that 
the country was lagging behind in this aspect.

Since then, the issue of affirmative action has been a sensitive one, with 
women groups mounting campaigns for its consideration. A debate on it 
recurred recently (February 12).

Organised by African Youth Parliament, an assembly of pro-development young 
Africans operating from Nairobi, the discussion sought views of the youth 
on the issue.

The discussion, under the theme "Affirmative Action: Towards Gender Equity 
or Reverse Discrimination", assembled youth, gender activists, social 
scientists and	scholars.

Delivering a keynote address, Kenya's renowned constitutional lawyer, 
Patrick Lumumba, observed that affirmative action was necessary for the 
sake of mainstreaming matters that affect both genders.

Women rights activists who spoke at the occasion contended that affirmative 
action was mandatory in liberating women who had been historically 
marginalised, and that it was necessary in changing cultural myths that 
"women cannot do this or that".

Lumumba concurred. "Affirmative action is necessary to ensure a symbiotic 
relationship that sees both men and women benefit from one another, 
realising a common goal in the fight against disease, poverty and 
illiteracy," he said.

It emerged that there were many factors that contributed to the complexity 
of affirmative action.

The first place to correct the wrongs, according to Lumumba, is in the 
political realms, he maintained would be the initial battle against gender 
discrimination.

After liberating women from the bondage of political discrimination, the 
next step would be to incorporate them into the economic arena.

This, according to Prof Maria Nzomo, a political scientist, should be done 
by taking deliberate steps designed to empower women economically, and 
demonstrate to them that they too, can contribute effectively  in the 
economic arena.

The third is legislation. Women have time and again complained that most 
laws in the country were discriminatory and gender insensitive. "Our laws 
must change and we must begin to legislate in a manner that is sensitive to 
women," Judy Thongori, a lawyer recently commented.

Prof. Maria Nzomo, says that affirmative action is both necessary and just 
in a democratic society. "It provides a solution to where there have been 
injustices and imbalances," she observes.

But analysts say affirmative action on its own, cannot resolve the 
structural problems of society, and for this reason, there is need to 
consult with other countries where the system has worked.

A good reference point would be Sweden, which has the best record of 
affirmative action in the world, being the only country where there are 
more women cabinet ministers than men. Tanzania is in good books too, with 
45 women in parliament.

Dr. Jackline Oduol, a humanities lecturer at the United States 
International University- Africa (USIU), emphasises that affirmative action 
is not only necessary, but urgently needed.

According to her, men have always had a foul start, and it was time women 
stood up and said "enough is enough".

Dr. Oduol notes that society has created stereo-types that are working to 
the woman's disadvantage, creating myths that are bundling women with guilt 
and shame.

She cites a common example, stating: "When a child is doing well in school, 
it is a father's child, when she or he is doing poorly, then it is a 
mother's child".

The youth too have their ideas about affirmative action. One Benjamin Njue, 
says correction of societal injustices against women must start from family 
level.

"Take your son to a good college to do superior course like engineering. 
Take your daughter too to do an equally challenging course and not a cheap 
one like secretarial or tailoring," he argues.

Another, Morris Odhiambo, expresses fear that using phrases like "enough is 
enough" is provoking social order. "These are provocative words and 
everyone will sooner or later be up in arms to counter those chanting such 
words," he notes.

However, one fact that has emerged strongly during debates on affirmative 
action is that it should be approached carefully.

To this, constitutional lawyer Lumumba, who is also secretary to the 
Constitution of Kenya Review Commission, remarked: "We should not approach 
the donkey of affirmative action with ruthlessness but rather appreciate 
the fact that it is not a simple thing to adopt."